Heaven

Tonight, my wife and I watched the movie, The Pursuit of Happyness. The film traces the life of Chris Gardner, a down on his "luck" dad who goes to extreme lengths to land a job with a prestigious investment firm to give himself and his son the good life. The movie depicts Gardner's struggles, embarassments, and even pain as he works to care for his son and make ends meet. After a strenuous internship, the movie culminates as the senior partner of the firm informs Gardner that he has been hired. Gardner seems to have reached that blissful state that Thomas Jefferson told all of us Americans we have the right to pursue.

How does Scripture present the pursuit of happiness? Could it be that after all his toil, struggle and pain Gardner did not acquire true happiness? Is it the attainment of some position, job title, success in a career the grand end of human happiness?

The narrative of Scripture reveals to us that we were created happy. (And, this at a time when the exchange markets had yet to be developed.) We were created for God in relationship with him. The whole earth is His and has been created for His glory. In fact, The End for Which God Created the World was his own glory, not human happines. Realizing how offensive that is to modern ears, I will clarify by saying man's pursuit of God's glory is human happiness. And while it is not necessarily safe, it is certainly satisfying. This is the picture Scripture gives us of Heaven on Earth. Blaise Pascal rightfully noted that every human being is constantly working to pursue happiness. This drive exists because we retain a portion of the once perfect witness of the image of God in us. Yet, most of the culture is pursuing happiness in shadows while always missing the true light. We love the creation instead of the creator. We love people more than the one whose image people bear. We love money more than the one who holds all things. Augustine said it well when he said He loves you less who together with you loves something which he does not love for your sake. This is as close as the creature can come to heaven on earth. To love all things for Christ's sake is the revolutionary delight that will drive us closer to the joys that were ours in the garden and will be ours in the eternal kingdom.

Such love will transform your work, your marriage, your very life. To achieve his happiness, Gardner admirably took risks. He risked loss for greater gain. For him who is in Christ, the only loss that is demanded is the putting off of the old self. Is this process painful? It can be unbelievably painful. Yet, it is satisfying, unbelievably so. Its end is God Himself.